# Burned Tongue



## Ansgar (Sep 10, 2008)

I've been smoking my new pipe for about 3 weeks. I've talked to two friends during that time who told me they stopped smoking a pipe because it burned their tongue. Well, I'm having the same problem. It seems odd to me, because pipe smoke is cooler than smoking cigars. So, I'm guessing that the burn might be due to the pipe tobacco, meaning that the tobacco has something in not found in cigar tobacco. I've got two quite different pipe tobaccos and both burn my tongue.

Am I right about the tobacco? If so, are any types of pipe tobaccos that don't burn the tongue?


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## GolfNut (Jun 29, 2008)

I'm a total novice, but I didn't want to leave you hanging all night. Yes, there are some tobacco's that bite more than others. also, the speed at which you smoke it plays a big factor here. Slow is better, almost to the point of it going out. Hard for me to do for sure!

You will receive some good info later when the pipe boys wake up!


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## Fatmandu (Mar 18, 2008)

TONGUE BITE. Happens to everyone. Smoking too fast will cause the irritation to the tongue as well as tobacco that is 'wet'. All pipe tobaccos have PG, some more than others, which makes/keeps the tobacco moist. Once you add flame, the moisture turns to steam, which you are sucking into your mouth.....combustion, tongue bite. Slow down your pace and allow the tobacco to sit out and dry before packing. Don't be shy about running a pipe cleaner or 3 down the stem during the smoke. After a good cake is built up in the bowl, the bite will reduce as well. G'Luck, hang in there


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## DBCcigar (Apr 24, 2008)

You can also get a Peterson. Their patient stem causes the smoke to hit the roof of your mouth rather than a direct stream of hot smoke on your tongue.


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## Dun killin time (Jun 4, 2007)

one other thing, don't drink carbonated sodas and such, they make the sting even worse.


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## Slow Triathlete (Jun 14, 2007)

All good advice here so far. It was mentioned above about types of tobacco and I wanted to elaborate on that. Straight Virginia tobacco is infamous for tongue bit. That is one of the reasons that they add certain tobaccos (perique, latakia, etc) to the blend. These "condiment" tobaccos help burn the blend cooler and therefore doesn't kill your tongue. All new pipe smokers experience this to a point. It is mostly because there is no kind of filtering system in a pipe unless you buy a pipe with a filter. With a cigar you have the whole length of the cigar to act as a filter and the smoke has cooled off by the time it hits your tongue.

As well, certain brands of pipe tobacco burn more than others. MacBaren is famous for tongue bite. I can say this becuase I have yet to smoke a MacBaren blend that didn't hurt my tongue. A lot of people love them though.

Let me know if you keep having trouble with this and I'll try and see what else is going on.


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## Ansgar (Sep 10, 2008)

Thanks fellas for the good advice. And several of you are right, I do tend to try and keep that bowl from going out which makes for a lot of toking. The first tobacco I tried (bought with the pipe) is Esoterica's Scarborough. I do remember seeing Virginia tobaccos listed in its description.

Anyone have names they want to drop for a tobacco that's less prone to burn? I'm not a fellow who likes perfumes, candies, or flavorings, if you catch my drift. I drink my coffee from freshly ground Columbian beans, I make it strong and drink it black. I love the taste of good coffee, not the sugar and cream. I imagine my taste in pipe tobaccos would run about the same. There only seems to be several thousand pipe tobaccos. Maybe I should take it to town, rather than ordering on Internet.

Thanks again for the great input. I know of no one who smokes a pipe, so this is about all I have from which to learn - the forums.


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## Fatmandu (Mar 18, 2008)

GL Pease CHARING CROSS!!! W H A M!!! great with STRONG coffee...anyhow, check out this link, no I have no ve$ted interest other than my investMENTS!

http://www.glpease.com/

I simply found Greg's stuff to be my favorite over time and stick with it.


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## Ansgar (Sep 10, 2008)

Fatmandu,

Thanks for the link. Great site too. Only, where can you buy it?

I also found this paragraph in his FAQ section and thought it might lend to the thread. Emphasis is mine:

Some Popular Myths

High sugar virginias "bite"

I can't count the number of times I've read this. For some reason, it's commonly believed that the more sugar in the leaf, the more "bite" the smoker will experience. While it's true that some tobaccos with a lot of sweetness do tend to irritate the smoker, it's not the sugar content that's responsible.

*Tongue "bite" is a response to smoke with a higher pH (more alkaline) than the mouth and tongue are used to.* Some tobaccos, notably burleys, contain a high percentage of nitrogenous compounds, and produce a more alkaline smoke. The dreaded "burley curse" often results. Tobacco producers will work to mitigate this by adding sugars to the casing sauces. Sugars, when burned, actually acidify the smoke, resulting in less "bite." Virginia tobaccos are often blended with burleys to perform the same function. This leads to questions about casing and sauces...​


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## IHT-cl (Oct 7, 2008)

was gonna say that for some ppl it's a PH issue.
if you're new to pipes, it takes a while to get acclimated to the way the smoke feels on the tongue compared to cigars. took me a while, but there are still some tobaccos that i don't dare smoke (mostly VAs by MacBaren - known to most as MacBitten).

what tobacco is it that you're smoking?


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## koolhandk (Dec 17, 2007)

Ansgar said:


> Anyone have names they want to drop for a tobacco that's less prone to burn? I'm not a fellow who likes perfumes, candies, or flavorings, if you catch my drift.


Now FatMan or Slotri can correct me if I am wrong but I would suggest the frog morton blends. They aren't aromatics but are very smooth and less prone to tongue bite (at least the blends I have had). Very good stuff, thank Got the fatman introduced me to it. Thanks again FJ.


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## SoTL1977 (Jul 31, 2008)

If your pipe has a short stem, that can cause the smoke to be a bit hot too - generally, the longer and/or more curved the pipe stem, the cooler the smoke. Also, as Fatmandu mentioned, don't puff on your pipe like a freight train - taking your time smoking your pipe will make it smoke cooler too.


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## Ansgar (Sep 10, 2008)

SoTL1977 said:


> If your pipe has a short stem, that can cause the smoke to be a bit hot too - generally, the longer and/or more curved the pipe stem, the cooler the smoke. Also, as Fatmandu mentioned, don't puff on your pipe like a freight train - taking your time smoking your pipe will make it smoke cooler too.


Well, the tobacco exiting the stem is cool - cooler than my cigars, which is why I was surprised by the burn to tongue. I'm using a Dublin style pipe, so the stem isn't too short. No, cool smoke is still burning, so it must be the tobacco - some quality therein; tobacco ph or additives.

I'll check out the "frog morton blends" koolhandk. Thanks.

Hell, maybe there's a way to naturally lower or raise the ph balance. I'll have to get out my _Tobacco Alchemy Handbook_ and look it up. =)


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## Slow Triathlete (Jun 14, 2007)

koolhandk said:


> Now FatMan or Slotri can correct me if I am wrong but I would suggest the frog morton blends. They aren't aromatics but are very smooth and less prone to tongue bite (at least the blends I have had). Very good stuff, thank Got the fatman introduced me to it. Thanks again FJ.


I would recommend the Frog Morton blends. The original Frog Morton is one of my favorites. Frog Morton on the Bayou is also a good one.


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## Python (Dec 3, 2007)

A little trick that I use to get rid of tongue bite is to rinse your mouth with warm salt water for a few minutes. It works for me and cuts out almost all of the 'bite'.


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## Ansgar (Sep 10, 2008)

Python said:


> A little trick that I use to get rid of tongue bite is to rinse your mouth with warm salt water for a few minutes. It works for me and cuts out almost all of the 'bite'.


There it was. A true alchemical remark. =)

I'll implement the tip. =) Thanks.


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## SmokinJohnny (Jan 21, 2009)

I just started smoking again and got some nasty tounge burn from a strong burley mix. Went back to the mild aromatics and was OK. A good soaking in Listerene stung at first but it numbed the burn.

Now I get a light burley blend and the tounge gets a pleasant, addictive bite.


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